Rumour Has It
by nalusaurus
Summary: AU. Natsu's been hearing a rumour around school that Lucy - the girl he's been in love with since forever - hates him! Suddenly she wants to talk to him after school to clear it all up. Nalu. One Shot.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail or it's characters.**

* * *

Natsu sat in the back row of the maths classroom and watched her laugh from the front.

There couldn't really be a bigger divide between them. She was beautiful, popular, clever, rich...she was _everything_. And there he was; the class clown, barely scraping together his grades and from a pretty dirt pour - though doubtlessly thoroughly loving - family.

He watched her because he knew he was never going to have a chance with her - he _shouldn't_ \- that and he loved her smile. And her laugh. And the way her golden hair shined. Okay, maybe he just full on loved her. She was his sun, his moon _and_ his stars and to her he was just...an idiot, he assumed. Sure, he had made her laugh and sometimes she was polite enough to speak to him, but she wouldn't ever feel that same burning love in her heart for him.

She was surrounded by the most attractive guys in school and had yet to date any of them. She was looking for the love of her life and he had no doubt in his mind it wasn't him.

So as he watched her laugh - the sound like music to his tired ears - he gave a heavy sigh. Lucy Heartfilia was never going to be his. Maybe in another life. Maybe where he was cool and had some awesome powers and didn't constantly get into trouble for clowning around and starting fights.

"Dude, stop starin'. It's creepy." Gray muttered next to him, nudging the arm his face was resting on until it slipped of the desk and he nearly smashed his face.

"Fuck off, Icebrains." Natsu snapped in reply, turning to face him with slanted eyes.

"You might not want to keep that up," Gray snorted. "Didn't you hear the rumours?"

Natsu's ears perked up at the word 'rumours' and he frowned. Crap, was Lucy now in a relationship? His heart raced.

"What rumours?" he asked, a little too fast, a cocky grin growing Gray's face.

"Apparently Lucy hates you," Gray whispered, looking around to check that no-one - including the teacher - was looking their way.

His heart literally stopped for a beat and then he felt his stomach drop. She hated him? But he had _made sure_ not to do anything that would make her feel uncomfortable despite the fact that he was in love with her! And it wasn't even as if they spent any time together! How could she hate him?!

Gray must have noticed the panicked look on his face because he decided to speak up. "Hey, man. It's just a rumour so don't buy too much into it." He said, clapping him on the shoulder.

They both looked forward before the teacher would have a chance to spot them chatting and, at that moment, he notice Lucy looking back at him. He tried to offer a meek smile but she frowned the minute they made eye contact and quickly looked back to the front.

"She frowned at me! What does that mean?!" he squeaked quietly, looking back to Gray with a frightened look.

"Shit, man. Maybe it wasn't just hear say…" Gray sighed, frowning himself.

"Crap! What did I do to make her hate me?!" he whispered.

"I dunno, dude. Maybe her friends caught on to the fact that you like to watch her in maths," Gray teased, coughing to cover a laugh.

"I don't do it _every time_!" he argued, unsure if he was telling the truth or not.

"You just confessed to the crime, flamebrain." Gray snorted.

"You're the worst friend ever!" Natsu snapped.

"Hey! At least _I_ like you!" Gray teased.

"Asshole." he snapped in reply.

"Dumbass!"

"Stripper!"

"Fireface!"

"Icedick!"

" _NATSU! GRAY! DETENTION!"_

* * *

"This happened because you were gettin' so touchy about the shit with Lucy anyway!" Gray complained on their way out of detention.

"It happened 'cause you were bein' an asshole!" Natsu snapped.

"See! Touchy!" Gray pointed.

"Yeah, well at least the girl _you_ like actually likes you back…" Natsu muttered, slumping his shoulders in defeat.

"Hey, don't whine about it, man! I'm sure it's all just bullshit anyway! Since when has Lucy actually hated _anyone_!" Gray countered.

"I guess…" he sighed, knowing that if Lucy was going to change her ways for anyone, it would probably be him. Just not in a good way apparently.

"Natsu! Gray! Getting into trouble again I see." A booming voice said from behind them.

The both froze in their tracks and uttered a small shiver before turning to see the beast herself; Erza Scarlet. Now they were in trouble.

"N-no, ma'am!" they both squealed, leaning against each other for support.

"That's not what I've heard." She said with narrowed eyes and, for a moment, Natsu actually feared for his life. "Anyway," she sighed, prompting both of them to do the same. "I'm not here about that detention. I'm here because of Lucy." she said, a stern look on her face.

Natsu gulped. Did Lucy hate him enough to sic Erza on him?!

"She wants to talk to you." she said simply, not giving anything away.

"S-she wants to talk _to me_?" he asked, confused.

"Yes. About all those rumours." she added. "I don't want you to hold up her day any longer. I expect you to be polite."

His heart stopped for the second time that day. _Hold her up_. That meant that she had been waiting for him even with the half an hour detention he had at the end of the day. Shit. He must have done something _really_ wrong to get her that angry. He paled but nodded.

"Er, where is she?" he asked, trying not to show his fear.

"She's by the gates. Don't dawdle." Erza warned.

"Aye!" he squealed.

"So does this mean I can go?" Gray asked, seeming bored.

"We still have the matter of your detention to discuss, _Gray_." she replied and Natsu ran out, leaving his friend to his fate.

Despite the fact that it only took him five minutes to get to the gate outside, it felt like it took a lifetime. Every step felt slow and heavy and made his heart sink a little more. He just wanted to live in his fantasy world a little longer and not know the reality that Lucy Heartfilia thought he was just some idiot.

Seeing her standing by the gate, waiting for _him_ , watching the road, with her pretty hair blowing in the wind was both heart breaking and beautiful. It was like he knew in that moment that he loved her for sure. Because no real human should look that much like an angel. He couldn't, looking at her, think of a single thing he didn't love about her. Because even her faults were beautiful.

Then she turned to look at him as he stood in front of her. He felt so small then, because her pretty face was marred with a frown. Her cheeks were lightly dusted with red and her warm brown eyes revealed nothing of what she was thinking. He smiled, stupidly, - it was the only reaction he could think of - and the pink in her cheeks got a little darker.

Shit, did he just make her feel uncomfortable? Should he make a joke and try to play it all off?

Just as he was about it open his mouth - and inevitably make a fool of himself, seeing as that's what he was best at doing - to speak she interrupted him.

"I-I'm sure you've probably heard all of the rumours around school today…" she said, her frown deepening.

"Er, yeah…" he replied, scratching the back of his head nervously. He didn't know when he got to be so awkward speaking to her, but suddenly he felt like his tongue was constantly being caught in his mouth.

"W-Well, I just don't want you to feel uncomfortable about it, you know. Not that I'm saying it's true!" she squeaked, taking him aback. "Unless you want it to be…" she said, quieter than before but his good hearing caught it easily. Her cheeks were now a bright crimson.

He frowned. "Why would I want you to hate me?" he asked, accidentally voicing the question in his head.

"Hate you?!" she asked, seemingly in panic. "N-Natsu~!" she cried, "You think I hate you?" she pouted, her bottom lip trembling.

That was when the panic set in. Full blown panic. Because if there was one thing he was truly frightened of in the world, it was seeing Lucy cry.

"AH! Lucy! Don't cry! Please! I'll do anything! _Please don't cry!_ " he begged, getting on his knees.

"I'm not going to cry!" she snapped despite watery eyes.

"I'm sorry~! Please! It's just what Gray told me!" he whined desperately.

"Gray said I hated you?" she asked, sniffing.

"Well he said that's what he heard…" Natsu muttered, getting back on his feet.

"That's not what I heard!" Lucy frowned.

"What did you hear?" he asked, joining in on her frowning.

"N-Nothing!" she squeaked, giving a wobbly smile with a freshly red face.

"Then what was it you were askin' if I wanted ta be true?" he asked, his frown deepening.

"It doesn't matter!" she laughed awkwardly, shaking her hands.

"Yeah, but I wanna know!" he said narrowing his eyes and moving a little too close to her face.

"W-Well...I don't want to say!" she huffed, crossing her arms.

"I guess I can just ask Erza then," he replied, turning around to walk back the way he came.

He was just about to leave when he felt a pull at the back of his school shirt. He turned around to see Lucy grabbing onto him with her head down, her bangs covering her eyes.

"Please don't ask Erza," she said quietly.

"But I wanna know!" he pouted.

"Promise you won't laugh?" she asked, talking quietly again, looking up to him with a red face again.

"Well, yeah. Unless it's somethin' funny like Gray fallin' in a toilet!" he chuckled.

"Natsu! Focus!" she complained.

"I promise, Luce." he smiled, almost hitting himself for the nickname, seeing as it made her pull away from her grip on him like she had been burned.

"W-Well, I guess I have to tell you now…" she said, balling her fists by her side.

"Yeah…" he replied, gulping, watching her carefully.

"I like you…" she muttered, so quietly he would have been convinced it had been in his head had it not been for her bright red face and the scared look in her eyes.

"Huh?" he replied, completely dumbstruck.

Lucy Heartfilia - perfect, beautiful, _amazing_ Lucy Heartfilia - had just _confessed_ to him. _To him_. The girl he had been in love with for _years_. Had just told him she liked him. Was this a joke? It had to be a joke.

Lucy obviously seemed to think he hadn't heard because she spoke again. He was glad because he felt like they both needed the confirmation.

"I like you, okay?" she snapped, "I really like you! I…" she paused taking in a huge breath, "I might even love you…" she squeaked quietly.

Though he - admittedly, barely - managed not to faint on the spot for the shock, he couldn't help it when his shoulders sagged, his jaw went slack, opening wider than it ever had in his life, and his eyes widened. He had to be dreaming, right? There was no way that he was awake. There was no way this beautiful creature had actually told him that she not only _liked him_ but _loved_ him.

"W-What's that look for, idiot?!" she shouted, frowning despite her blush.

"Did you just…?" he asked, "To me…?"

"Don't laugh, okay?" she said, dropping her head and hiding her eyes behind her bangs again. "You promised." she whispered. That sobered him up.

"Lucy…" he spoke, unsure how to finish.

"It's stupid! I know. I'm a _weirdo_. I know that's what you call me…" she sighed.

"Lucy, I…" he stopped. What was the best way to tell her he had been crazy in love with her for just about forever?

"You don't have to say anything, Natsu." she mumbled, looking close to tears again.

"Geez, don't cry, weirdo!" he said in another panic.

"I can't help it! It's not fun being heartbroken, stupid!" she snapped.

"Hey! Wait! That's not what I meant!" he complained, "And you call _me_ an idiot!" he huffed.

"What do you mean?" she asked, her bottom lip still trembling.

"I love you, Weirdo. I've been in love with you _forever_ and I didn't think you would ever - in a million years - feel the same way. So don't cry! I hate seeing you cry…" he confessed, looking away from her.

"You love me?" she asked.

"More than anything…" he replied, trying to ignore his blush, still looking away.

"More than food?" she asked.

"Well, yeah…" he replied, looking back at her to narrow his eyes.

"More than fighting?"

"Yeah…"

"More than Happy?"

"Yeah...Hey! Wait! How do you know my cat and how is it fair to ask me to pick?!" he cried.

"Well he comes to visit me sometimes, though it took me a long time to figure out it was your cat and not some stupid mean stray…" she said.

"HAPPY BETRAYED ME?!" he shouted.

"More importantly, did you just insinuate there was a chance you would pick Happy over me?" she huffed.

"Well, it's not like we're datin' or anything and Happy is my best friend…"

"Well _you_ didn't ask! And your best friend is a cat?! And you call _me_ a weirdo!"

"Your best friend is a cat too!" he snickered.

"LOKE IS NOT A CAT!" she huffed.

"He looks like one!" he laughed.

"NO HE DOES NOT!" she berated.

"Why are you defendin' him. You like him or somethin'?" he asked with narrowed eyes, ready to punch the guy.

"What?! _I just told you I love you and you think I like Loke_?! I DON'T GET YOU!" she cried.

"Oh, yeah…" he frowned.

"Argh!" she groaned, "Are you going to ask me out or not?"

"Why can't _you_ ask _me_ out?" he asked.

"AH! FINE! NATSU, WILL YOU BE MY BOYFRIEND?" she shouted.

"I'm pretty sure that's the step after dating…" he commented.

"JUST ANSWER THE QUESTION BEFORE I HIT YOU!" she growled.

"Yeah, yeah…" he sighed. "I'M GONNA BE THE BEST BOYFRIEND IN THE WORLD!" he raged, "WHO DO YOU NEED ME TO BEAT UP FIRST?"

"You're not beating anyone up, Natsu." Lucy sighed in frustration.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" he asked.

She laughed, a full-blown, hearty laugh before she moved closer to him and, before he could ask another question, kissed him.

Natsu had always thought kissing was stupid. Well, he did before he saw Lucy. And then kissing and all of the stuff that came _after_ kissing became really _really_ appealing. But only with Lucy. Seeing as he never thought Lucy would even consider kissing him, he had kind of tucked the idea into a deep recess of his mind when it came to her. Mostly in case the stuff that came after kissing worked it's way into his mind when he saw her and ended up in a super awkward situation.

Kissing Lucy was definitely the best thing he had done in his life. And he had punched Gray.

Her lips were soft, full and pressed against his chapped ones like there was nothing more she wanted to do in the world. Her hands were grasped onto his shirt and he wasn't really sure what to do with his. He had closed his eyes almost immediately, not wanting to waste time of a sense that wasn't needed to kiss her. Suddenly, when Lucy seemed like she was beginning to pull back, he found a place for his hands on the back of her head, tangling in her hair and pulling her closer.

This time he led the kiss, pushing fiercely against her lips with an enthusiasm he usually reserved for food and fighting. He wasn't sure if he was doing a good job but, driven by the need to suddenly know what her lips felt like on his tongue, he opened his mouth to swipe her bottom lip, groaning at the sweet taste of her strawberry lip balm. Lucy grasped onto him tighter and opened her mouth to him, her tongue tentatively coming out to meet his. Her taste was _amazing,_ better than any food, and he quickly explored her mouth to get more of it, eventually coming back to take adoring strokes of her own tongue.

All in all, Natsu was, once again, surprised that he hadn't fainted. He was also one-hundred percent sure that he had now found his new favourite hobby.

When they finally broke apart they both gasped for air, grinning like idiots at each other.

"Can we do that more?" he asked, moving his hands from her hair to her hips - man he loved those hips.

"Definitely." she replied, beaming from ear to ear.

"A lot more. Every second possible. Now?" he asked, talking faster than usual.

"Calm down, Natsu!" she stopped him. "Maybe we shouldn't do it in school..." she frowned.

"Hmm, you're right! Let's go to mine!" he grinned.

"Right now?" she squealed.

"Yeah. Right now. As fast as possible 'cause I wanna kiss you again." he insisted.

"B-But!" she complained, but he was already dragging her to the direction of his house, interlacing their fingers.

"I bet Happy's gonna be so pleased, that sneaky bastard!"

"But I have to go home!" she cried.

"Yeah, with me!" He said, looking back to roll his eyes at her. "Geez, Luce, you're bein' extra weird today!"

"What about my dad?" she asked.

"Can't you call him or somethin'? Jus' tell him it's super important 'cause I might die if I don't kiss you again today." he insisted, missing her blush as he looked back forward so they could cross the road.

"That's not funny!" she complained.

"Yeah, I know! I might die!" he agreed, smiling when he realised they were close to getting back. Today was definitely one of those days he was happy about living so close to school.

"Okay, stupid. I'll call him when we get there. I have a feeling I'm going to be in big trouble when I get home…" she sighed.

"YES!" he cheered, pulling her the rest of the way home.

No longer nervous around her - she _was_ his girlfriend now - he threw open his front door as carelessly as he usually did and slammed it behind them.

"Yo! Pops! You around?" he shouted into the house, only letting go of Lucy's hand when she insisted on taking her shoes off. He threw his off too just in time for his Dad to come barrelling down the stairs.

"Natsu! Yo-" he paused the moment he saw Lucy by his side. "Who's this? He asked with a coy smile.

Igneel was very much like him, except for the dark red hair and the golden eyes. That was probably his main reason for not completely trusting his old man with Lucy. He was cunning.

"This is Lucy," he said, gesturing to her with his hands. "She's my _girlfriend_." he said pointedly, trying his hardest not to blush at the confession, especially when his Dad raised his eyebrow.

"It's lovely to meet you, Lucy." Igneel said, shaking her hand charmingly, a huge grin on his face.

"Y-Yeah! You too!" she said with an awkward smile.

"I didn't know you had such a pretty girlfriend, Natsu!" his Dad asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

"It just happened today…" he replied, not able to stop his blush this time.

"Is that right?" he asked.

"Yes!" Lucy squeaked.

His Dad let out a hearty laugh and patted Natsu on the shoulder.

"Well I hope you can stay for dinner then, Lucy. I would love to get to know you. You must be pretty great if Natsu's bringing you home." he insisted.

"Dad!" Natsu complained but Lucy didn't seem annoyed.

"I would love to! Though I think I have to call my Dad first. Natsu just dragged me over before I could even say yes…" she hummed.

"That's Natsu for you!" Igneel laughed.

" _Dad!_ "

* * *

So Natsu might have spent the rest of the night - minus the time spent at dinner - until Lucy had to leave making out with her.

It was definitely _not_ what he thought was going to do that evening when he woke up that morning, but he was extremely pleased with the outcome. So much so, that when he walked into school that morning, he had a massive shit-eating grin on his face.

"What's got you so fuckin' cheery?" Gray asked as they sat down at their usual table for lunch.

"None of your business," Natsu replied with a smile.

"Shit, you didn't even end that with an insult! You must be happy!" Gray replied.

"Fuck off." Natsu said calmly.

"So what happened with Lucy anyway?" Gray asked, narrowing his eyes at him over his food.

Before Natsu could come up with a good excuse - he wasn't really sure if Lucy wanted everyone to know since they spent most of their time together making out - he found the spare seat next to him being taken. He turned around to see Lucy's huge smile, followed by a kiss that was short, sweet and definitely left him wanting more.

"Well, fuck." Gray said, snapping them out of a loving gaze and making them both blush as they turned to him. "So that rumour wasn't true, huh?" he asked.

"Nah," Natsu sighed happily, grabbing Lucy's hand under the table.

"Well I guess I better start a rumour about Juvia this time…" he replied, getting up to leave them alone.

Natsu paused.

"HEY! WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!"

* * *

 **Thanks for reading! I hope it wasn't too bad, I stayed up pretty late to finish it all in one go (including editing). I shall be continuing working on Burn tomorrow, promise! In the mean time I hope you enjoyed all the fluff and jokes :)**


End file.
